1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a mobile terminal and an apparatus therefor enabling a user to more conveniently use the mobile terminal.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
A mobile terminal can perform various functions. Examples of such functions include data and voice communications, capturing images and video via a camera, recording audio, playing music files and outputting music via a speaker system, and displaying images and video on a display. Some terminals include additional functionality which supports game playing, while other terminals are also configured as multimedia players. More recently, mobile terminals have been configured to receive broadcast and multicast signals which permit viewing of contents, such as videos and television programs.
Generally, terminals can be classified into mobile terminals and stationary terminals. In addition, the mobile terminals can be further classified into handheld terminals and vehicle mounted terminals.
A touch screen is also widely utilized as an input and output mechanism, because the touch screen not only performs functions of both a user input unit and output unit but also plays a big role in providing an intuitive control of the mobile terminal. In more detail, the intuitive control is one of very important elements in terms of a user using the mobile terminal. Hence, development of a method of controlling a mobile terminal is focusing on developing an input scheme which is more intuitive to a user.
One intuitive input scheme corresponds to a tapping input scheme. The tapping input scheme corresponds to a user shortly tapping at one area (i.e., touch screen) of a mobile terminal with a prescribed time (at least once). The tapping input scheme is similar to an operation of a knock (or knock knock) on a door. The dictionary definition of the knock is to make a noise by lightly tapping at a door prior to entering a room.
Thus, a tapping operation may be intuitively recognized as an action for informing a predetermined counterpart with whom a user intends to contact of a presence of the user via a mobile terminal. In addition, a mobile terminal can detect the tapping input via various sensors/schemes.
For example, in a first method, the mobile terminal can detect the tapping input via a touch screen. If the touch screen is activated, the mobile terminal detects a touch input of a user input on the touch screen and can detect the tapping input via the detected touch input. However, this method has a drawback because the tapping input is input on the touch screen only.
As a second method of detecting the tapping input, the mobile terminal can detect the tapping input using an acceleration sensor. If a user taps at an area of a mobile terminal, the acceleration sensor detects acceleration change of the mobile terminal received by the tapping input and can deliver the acceleration change to a controller. The controller can then detect the tapping input via the acceleration change of the mobile terminal delivered from the acceleration sensor. However, the second method has a drawback because the sensitivity of the tapping input may be lower than that of the tapping input by a different input method.
As a third method of detecting the tapping input, the mobile terminal can detect the tapping input using both the touch screen and the acceleration sensor at the same time. When using both methods, the mobile terminal may well detect the tapping input by supplementing the drawbacks caused by each of the methods. However, this complicates the process of inputting information into the mobile terminal.